Imhotep (portrayed by Arnold Vosloo) is the main antagonist in The Mummy and The Mummy Returns. He was an ancient Egyptian priest, the high-priest of Osiris, and the adviser to Seti I. For his crimes of murdering the Pharaoh and using dark magic from the book of the dead, Imhotep was punished with death and mummification, becoming the only known person to be cursed with the Hom-Dai, the most evil of all ancient curses.
Resurrection[]
Imhotep was brought back in the first Mummy; this in turn gave him the desire to devour human flesh and the intent to spread evil and corruption throughout the world. Imhotep's intentions to rule the Earth turned towards the direction of taking the Scrolls of Thebes, which were ancient texts of power.
Imhotep remained imprisoned in Hamanaptra for three thousand years, sealed inside his sarcophagus, until in 1926, three treasure-seekers: Richard O'Connell, Jonathan Carnahan, and Evelyn Carnahan, came to Hamunaptra, hoping to find treasures. Meanwhile another treasure-seeking party including Dr. Allen Chamberlain, Bernard Burns, Henderson and David Daniels, came across a compartment that contained the Book of the Dead. With the chest opened, these four men would be killed by Imhotep should he ever return from the dead.
Second Death[]
In Hamunaptra, Imhotep was about to kill O'Connell, opening his mouth inhumanly wide. Before he could, however, Evelyn opened the Book of Amun-Ra and read an inscription that summoned the god Anubis, who soared in on a ghostly chariot and stripped Imhotep of his immortality. Enraged at what had happened, Imhotep stepped forward to kill O'Connell, but was stabbed in the stomach, and instead of being unharmed, he was mortally wounded.
Second Resurrection[]
Years after the High Priest had been killed, his remains had stayed in Hamunaptra, where a cultist group bent on world domination had set out to find him. The remains of Imhotep were taken to the British Museum to be brought back to life by reading from the Book of the Dead, a ritual performed by the museum curator and cultist leader, Baltus Hafez.
Third Death[]
In the Pyramid of Ahm Shere, after O'Connell defeated the Scorpion King and his Army, a blast of dust blew Rick O'Connell and his enemy Imhotep off the ledge that overlooked the Underworld, the stone ceiling of the temple crumbling down in huge rocks. Both of their loves stepped onto the scene as Rick and Imhotep called out: Rick screamed to Evelyn that she go and save herself and Alex, but Evelyn defied this by rushing over and helping Rick out of the abyss and out the doorways. Imhotep called out to Anck-Su-Namun for help, but Anck-Su-Namun fearfully shunned the request, running from the chamber in fear of being crushed by the falling rocks, and abandoning her lover.
As the pain and shock of being betrayed by the woman that he loved was too strong for him to live with, and as he was confronted by the sight of his enemies, the O'Connells, helping one another out, furthering his pain, Imhotep was left with his final choice: he let go of the ledge that he was holding onto and slipped away into the abyss, furthered by fiery demons within the pit that hauled the mummy further into Hell.